Chapter 136: Aged Secrets
That afternoon, many students hurried back to their dormitories to write home before finishing lunch, leaving Dumbledore inundated with letters.
After responding to them all, Dumbledore summoned Ethan directly from the Great Hall to his office.
The old man offered him some candy.
"When you found Ron petrified, did you see anyone suspicious? Harry said on Halloween night he heard voices, followed them, and eventually found Mrs. Norris."
"No. I heard a voice too and followed it, but I didn't find anyone. Shouldn't we ask Myrtle, though? After all, that's her bathroom, isn't it?"
Ethan unwrapped a piece of candy and popped it into his mouth, realizing Harry had only just told Dumbledore about the voices because Ron had advised him to.
After a moment's consideration, he decided not to reveal that he was a Parselmouth just yet, so he simply said he'd heard voices.
Dumbledore studied him intently, wondering whether Harry had told him anything. Ethan immediately shook his head. "I already asked her," he said. "She said she saw nothing. She wasn't in the bathroom at the time."
"I never expected one of the founders from a thousand years ago to leave behind a secret chamber, let alone a monster that could 'purify' the school." Dumbledore smiled with a hint of self-mockery.
"Hadn't the Chamber been opened before? Hadn't they already confirmed that a secret chamber existed?"
The old man seemed somewhat surprised. "You knew the Chamber had been opened before?"
Ethan was even more surprised. "Is that supposed to be a secret? As far as I know, most Slytherins know about it."
Draco, who had been the first to react, hadn't actually revealed the secret so freely in the common room. After all, it concerned his family.
But the news still spread through Slytherin. Presumably, someone had written home and heard back from their family.
Ethan figured anyone who'd attended school back then would know about it, and if they were still alive, they'd be parents or grandparents of students from other houses.
"Is that so?" Dumbledore's voice sounded somewhat tired.
"Indeed, fifty years ago, the Chamber was opened. Several students were injured, and one girl even lost her life."
Dumbledore began to tell the story.
Ethan listened attentively.
The situation was urgent at the time. The Ministry of Magic wanted to close Hogwarts to prevent further harm to students.
But at the crucial moment, Tom caught the murderer and saved the school from closure.
Worried that Ethan might not understand, the old man explained, "This Tom is Voldemort, the one you saw last semester. Back then, he was still going by Tom Riddle. I think I mentioned that to you before."
Ethan shook his head, taking the opportunity to ask a question. "You mentioned before that he went by Tom, but you never gave his surname. Does that mean the newly enrolled Nancy Riddle is connected to Voldemort?"
"I don't know. Are you familiar with this Nancy Riddle?"
"Somewhat. She's helping us sell a product." Ethan kept his explanation brief.
"Hmm, I see." The old man nodded.
"And the murderer they caught was Hagrid."
Even though he knew the whole story perfectly well, Ethan still had to feign surprise. "Hagrid? Is he the heir of Slytherin?"
"My reaction at the time was the same as yours. I didn't believe Hagrid was the heir who opened the Chamber, either."
But Hagrid had been keeping dangerous magical creatures since his school days. When he was caught, he was raising an extremely dangerous creature, so he could offer no explanation. Moreover, after Hagrid was arrested, the attacks stopped.
Although the Chamber was never found, both the Headmaster and the Ministry of Magic accepted this questionable conclusion to resolve the matter quickly.
In the end, they expelled Hagrid and awarded Tom the Special Award for Services to the School.
Ethan sneered. "Heh. They must have known it wasn't him. Otherwise, it wouldn't have ended with just expulsion. If he'd really opened the Chamber, he'd have been locked up in Azkaban."
Dumbledore smiled bitterly. "I never believed Hagrid did it, but there was no evidence. After I argued for him, Hagrid was allowed to stay at the school as the assistant gamekeeper."
"I think that, given time, we can clear Hagrid's name of this fifty-year-old injustice."
Ethan asked, surprised, "Wait, you're not going to resolve this right now? Aren't you afraid other students might get hurt or even killed?"
"Don't worry. Based on the information you and Harry gave me, I probably already know what it is, so I know how to monitor it. I want to wait a bit before dealing with it, to see who released this creature that hasn't shown up in fifty years." The old man sounded confident.
"Suit yourself. As long as you're not afraid of someone dying again." Since Dumbledore didn't seem to care, Ethan worried even less. He had two lives, was a Parselmouth, and had other means. No matter how he calculated the odds, he wouldn't be the one to fall.
"By the way, hand me Harry's Invisibility Cloak. He asked me about it when he visited. He mentioned that Ron had been sneaking around with it and asked if I had seen it," the old man added, suddenly remembering.
Ethan, who had found nothing special in his research, took the Invisibility Cloak out of the bag without hesitation and placed it on the sofa.
"Very well, I'll give it to you. But you'd better not give it back to him just yet. If he relies on the cloak to wander the castle at night, I doubt you'd be able to find him."
"That makes sense. It seems this item is better off staying with me for now." The old man's eyes narrowed as he realized Ethan had a point. Harry would definitely do something like that.
"If there's nothing else, I'll be going." Ethan stood up.
Dumbledore waved him off, watching as Ethan grabbed a handful of sweets and left the Headmaster's office.
As he passed through the entrance hall, he was surprised to find a group of students gathered in front of the notice board, excitedly reading a freshly posted notice.
"Dueling Club! First meeting tonight!" someone exclaimed.
Ethan overheard them but kept walking. *A Dueling Club run by Lockhart? What could anyone possibly hope to learn from that?*
Still, rumors claimed Snape intended to humiliate him during the event. It could be entertaining to attend and watch it happen. With that in mind, Ethan headed back to the dormitory.
Draco smirked. "Going to the Dueling Club tonight? I reckon we could pick up a few useful spells for self-defense."
"Count me in. What time and where? I didn't actually read the notice." Ethan put down the sweets, pocketed a few that caught his eye, and handed the rest to Goyle and Crabbe.
"It's at eight o'clock in the Great Hall. I heard Professor Flitwick was a dueling champion in his youth. I hope he's the one teaching us."
"Dueling champion?" Ethan hadn't expected the short, extremely amiable professor to have earned such an honor in his youth.
"Yeah, I only found out today, too. You really can't judge a book by its cover. Who would have thought?"
"Indeed." Ethan nodded. But he suspected Draco would be disappointed, since the club was supposed to be run by Lockhart. If Professor Flitwick was hosting it, it would be the Practical Charms Club.
He simply didn't know if Professor Flitwick would show up. Ever since the start of the year, many things had been different from what he remembered. Ethan didn't know if this time would be different.
At eight that evening, Ethan headed to the Great Hall with Hermione and Harry, having left the library early.
The long tables that usually filled the Great Hall had vanished. In their place stood a gilded stage, set against the wall where the Slytherin table had stood.
Hundreds of candles floated overhead, bathing the stage in glittering golden light.
The enchanted ceiling had stopped reflecting the weather outside, turning instead into a stretch of pitch-black velvet.
*Confirmed. Look at this flashy decor. It has to be Lockhart's doing.* Seeing the setup, Ethan was ninety percent sure of his assessment.
It seemed the entire school had turned out. With the tables and chairs removed, the Great Hall easily accommodated everyone.
Students stood in small clusters, wands drawn, chattering about who would be teaching them and what they would be learning.
"Isn't Professor Flitwick supposed to be teaching us?" Hermione clearly knew about the rumors, too.
"You guessed wrong, obviously." Ethan pointed toward the stage as Lockhart and Snape walked out.
"No!" Harry shouted, distressed.
Clad in shimmering violet-red robes that caught the candlelight, Lockhart flashed his pearly whites and waved his arms. "Quiet down, everyone. Gather round."
"Can everyone see me? Can you all hear me?"
Snape watched Lockhart's foolish display, a disdainful sneer curling his lip.
Ethan knew exactly what the professor found so amusing. A simple Sonorus Charm could have accomplished all of this effortlessly, yet it was painfully obvious that the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor didn't know such a spell.
"In light of recent events, I have arranged for this little Dueling Club to ensure you are all fully trained, should you ever need to defend yourselves."
Lockhart beamed at the students gathered below the stage. "I am delighted that Professor Dumbledore has allowed me to launch this club. I hope you'll all adopt the same methods I've used countless times to protect yourselves from danger."
"Of course, if you want to hear the detailed stories, please read my books. I've chronicled every experience in them, holding nothing back."
He winked at the students, flashing his snow-white teeth once more.
He turned slightly to the side, gesturing toward Snape.
"Allow me to introduce my assistant, Professor Snape." The greasy-haired man in black robes looked exactly as he always did and offered only a slight nod.
Lockhart paid no mind to Snape's indifference. "He assures me he's quite the duelist himself and has generously agreed to assist with a brief demonstration before we officially begin your instruction."
He flashed a grin. "Of course, I wouldn't want to cause you any alarm. Rest assured, once I finish the demonstration with Professor Snape, I'll return your Potions Master to you unharmed. There's no need to be afraid."
Lockhart failed to notice that Snape, standing behind him, had heard the remark. Snape's eyes narrowed into a cold glare.
Ethan recognized the signs of Snape's mounting anger and couldn't help but pity Lockhart.
"It would be better if they both got hurt," muttered Harry, who couldn't stand either of them. Hermione, hearing him, rolled her eyes.
Lockhart whispered a quick instruction to Snape. They then turned and walked in opposite directions, stopping about ten paces apart to face each other.
Lockhart beamed. Snape remained expressionless, radiating cold menace.
The two men faced each other and began to bow.
Lockhart's gestures were flamboyant, his posture graceful. He looked less like a duelist and more like a contestant in a dance competition.
Snape's movement was minimal, a slight inclination of his body. It was less a bow than a stiff nod.
Then they each raised their wands, holding them like rapiers at their chests.
Since this was a teaching demonstration, Snape suppressed the urge to strike immediately and listened as Lockhart explained the procedure to the students.
"As you can see, this is the standard dueling stance. One grips the wand this way." Lockhart demonstrated for the silent crowd.
"Next, we count to three and cast our first spells. Naturally, we shall exercise restraint. There will be no need to take anyone's life."
Snape allowed himself a rare smile.
"One, two, three!" Lockhart counted.
Both raised their wands at the same time.
"Expelliarmus!"
A dazzling red light shot from the tip of Snape's wand, striking Lockhart before he could finish his spell.
The wand flew from his hand and landed in the crowd. The force of the blast sent Lockhart stumbling backward. He tumbled off the stage, crashed into the wall, and slid down, curling up on the floor in pain.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Truly miserable." Ethan shook his head as he looked at Lockhart. *Wonder if Snape's getting revenge for that shampoo he was forced to use that night?*
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4.Harry Potter: Reborn as Draco Black = CHAPTER 134
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